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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24195334">The Storm Passes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/dimensionhoppingrose/pseuds/lenasmagic'>lenasmagic (dimensionhoppingrose)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Cuddle, F/F, Fluff, Small Cameos From Other Characters but really not worth tagging, That trope where Character A is afraid of Thunder Storms, an excuse for cuddles really, fears</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-03 01:14:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,712</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24195334</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/dimensionhoppingrose/pseuds/lenasmagic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Lena is definitely <i>not</i> afraid of thunder. Even the thought is ridiculous.</p><p>But... Webby makes storms a little better.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lena (Disney: DuckTales)/Webby Vanderquack</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>157</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Storm Passes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Really there's no reason for this. There was a thunder storm and I started thinking about how scary storms must be when you're homeless and sleeping on the streets. And here we are</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lena de Spell was <em>not</em> afraid of thunder.</p><p>That was <em>stupid</em>. She didn’t have <em>time</em> to be afraid of anything, as her aunt reminded her over and over and over and over. She had a job to do. Magica didn’t have time for <em>fears</em>.</p><p>She had spent entire nights curled up under trees and in alleys, trying and failing to stay dry while storms raged overhead. She had covered her ears, shivering, and hummed to herself until the storms had passed (because she certainly couldn’t sleep during that time). She had been <em>dangerously</em> close to lightning when it had hit a tree. Magica had scoffed at her about that.</p><p>
  <em>You’re a shadow. What’s being struck by lightning going to do to you?</em>
</p><p>Lena didn’t know. But neither did Magica. And she wasn’t going to be any good to either of them if she was dead. She learned to stay out of the way and not show her fears after that, though.</p><p>She was a shadow. She had a job. Those were the only things that mattered.</p><hr/><p>It was the first of many sleepovers at McDuck Manor. And ironically, it had been an accident.</p><p>Lena had been there most of the day, escaping from Webby to investigate when she could, which wasn’t often, much to Magica’s annoyance. Webby had <em>definitely</em> never had a friend before. Lena almost felt bad, taking advantage of it. Almost.</p><p>She had a job, after all.</p><p>“Yikes,” Huey said, looking from the movie they were watching to the window. The sky had opened up, pouring rain down like someone had dumped a giant bucket of water over the world.</p><p>“Great,” Lena grumbled, checking her phone. She hated walking in the rain. At least she had a dry place to call home, more or less. There were a few leaks in her ceiling, but the corner she had put the mattress in was safe.</p><p>“Let’s watch another movie,” Dewey suggested as the credits began rolling on the current movie. “Maybe it’ll stop before you leave.”</p><p>It didn’t stop. If anything, it got <em>worse</em>. Lena watched the window the entire time, wincing internally when the low rumble of thunder echoed overhead. <em>Great</em>.</p><p>“I don’t think it’s going to let up,” she said as they finished the last movie. “I might as well get going.”</p><p>“Can’t you call someone to pick you up?” Webby asked, eyes flicking to the window. Lena barely bit down a laugh.</p><p>“Heeee-ck no.” She corrected course when she saw Beakley coming in. “My aunt doesn’t drive.”</p><p>“You don’t plan on going out in that, do you?” The housemaid asked, raising an eyebrow. Lena hoped no one saw her shudder when another peel of thunder gently boomed. It was getting closer.</p><p>“Gotta get home somehow, Colonel Crumpet,” she said breezily, shrugging. Webby bit her tongue to keep from laughing. Beakley had more or less gotten used to and over Lena’s English stereotype nicknames. The girl was clearly incapable of showing sincerity, but she figured out how in her own way.</p><p>“Launchpad can drive you.”</p><p>This time Lena did laugh. “I think I’ll be safer in the rain. I’m still not over that train crash.” She clapped her hands together, index fingers pointing at Beakley. “Thanks for the offer, though. See you guys later.”</p><p>Beakley gently grabbed Lena’s shoulder as she started to walk out. “Call your aunt. If you won’t let someone drive you, then you’re staying here.”</p><p>“<em>What</em>?” Lena scoffed. “I don’t think-”</p><p>“Sleepover!” Webby said happily. “We can sleep in my library!”</p><p><em>Uuuuuugh</em>. “Look, I don’t live that far, I’m sure-”</p><p>Lightning flashed, lighting up the rec room. Beakley felt Lena jerk slightly under her arm. And Lena knew Beakley felt it. She sighed.</p><p>“Fine. Sleepover.”</p><p>Webby vaulted over the couch, bouncing happily. “I’ll find the sleeping bags!”</p><p>Lena swallowed a groan, looking up at Beakley and raising an eyebrow. “Didn’t know you cared, Tea Time.”</p><p>“I prefer that my granddaughter’s friends not be struck by lightning. Especially since she seems quite fond of you.”</p><p>Lena didn’t have a sarcastic answer for that. It wasn’t often people expressed actual concern for her safety. And Beakley seemed sincere, considering the sarcasm she was dealing with.</p><p><em>Please</em>, a small voice scoffed in the back of her head. <em>Don’t get comfortable. You know she doesn’t care</em>.</p><p>Right. Of course.</p><p>Webby spread out two sleeping bags and several blankets to create a nest for them to sleep in. “Is this okay?” she asked anxiously, hopping on the heels of her feet.</p><p>“It’s great, Pink.” Lena smiled, resting a head on Webby’s head for a moment. “Come on, let’s get to sleep before Abbey Road catches us.”</p><p>It was never easy for Lena to fall asleep. She wasn’t sure if it was a shadow thing or a her thing. The blanket nest was more comfortable than quite a few places she had slept in over the last fifteen years. And it was <em>inside</em>. That automatically made it better than at least ninety percent of the places she had ever slept. But she still found herself rolling over again and again, listening to the thunder and flinching with every <em>bang</em>. She buried her head under her pillow, humming softly to herself. It was just a storm. It would pass. Every storm always passed.</p><p>“Lena?”</p><p>No. Oh no. No, no, no. If she just pretended she hadn’t heard, maybe--</p><p>A small hand rested on her shoulder. “Lena, are you okay?”</p><p>She groaned internally, lifting her head. Webby was watching her with a small frown. “What’s up?” she asked, playing dumb.</p><p>“Are you okay?” Webby repeated. “Are… Are you afraid of the storm?”</p><p>“<em>What?</em>” Lena scoffed. “Psh, <em>no</em>. Of course not, that’s–”</p><p>A well timed bang of thunder was there to humiliate her – it crashed overhead, and she jumped under Webby’s hand. Webby’s eyes were wide.</p><p>“You <em>are</em> scared.”</p><p>“I am… not…”</p><p>Lena’s voice drifted off as Webby scooted closer, tucking herself into Lena and hugging her tight. Lena hadn’t realized until that moment she was shaking.</p><p>“<em>Pink</em>… I’m fine, really...”</p><p>“I don’t like thunder much,” Webby cut Lena off, not moving. “It’s too loud.”</p><p>Lena struggled for a moment, gritting her teeth, before she finally gave in. “Okay, well… if <em>you’re</em> afraid...”</p><p><em>Pathetic</em>. Magica sounded disgusted. Lena ignored her, holding Webby a little closer.</p><p>She fell asleep almost immediately, sleeping through the storm and better than she had in her life.</p><hr/><p>The worst nights were the nights Webby couldn’t sleep.</p><p>Lena wanted to reach out, to hold Webby, to comfort her, to assure it was okay. But she was stuck in the shadows, watching Webby roll over for the fourth time in half an hour while rain pounded against the window. She could hear the approaching thunder storm, and she <em>hated</em> that she was somehow still afraid of it.</p><p>Webby sighed, rolling onto her back and staring at the ceiling. Lena was lounging in the shadows next to the bed, watching her sadly. “I know, Pink.” Webby couldn’t hear her, but talking kept Lena sane sometimes. “It sucks.”</p><p>No response. “Remember that first sleepover? I kind of lied to you. Shocking, I know. But in my defense, you lied when you said you were afraid of thunder. You just wanted to cuddle, didn’t you?”</p><p>Webby rolled to stare out the window. “Or you just knew I was afraid.” Lena tucked her arms under her head, eyes still on the ceiling. “You probably just knew I was afraid, didn’t you? I wasn’t very good at acting. Remember when you caught me in Scrooge’s room, hovering over him with a diamond dagger?” Lena laughed. “And you just <em>listened</em> to me when I said I had the Scrooge fan bug. God, you were so… so...”</p><p>Lena’s voice drifted off. She closed her eyes, letting out a long breath. “Kind. Forgiving. Believing. Why did you have so much faith in me? I never deserved it.”</p><p>No response. Of course. Lena was used to one-sided conversations by now. She watched Webby’s back for a long moment, and realized the girl was asleep. Thunder rumbled overhead. “Yeah.” Lena closed her eyes. She didn’t need to sleep. It was entirely inconvenient. What was she supposed to do while Webby slept?</p><p>“What else did I lie to you about? I mean, besides the obvious. Let’s see, you said you found my journal, and you know about Aunt Magica and what I am… <em>wait</em>, how far in did you read? I can explain those Pink poems, I swear, they were just… nothing! They were nothing!” She groaned, pressing her hands to her face. “I’m definitely going to live in your shadow forever, it’s fine. Everything is fine.”</p><hr/><p>Something soft and warm fell on top of Lena. “I know you’re awake,” Webby said in a sing-song voice.</p><p>“Well if I wasn’t, I certainly am <em>now</em>,” Lena shot back, smiling. Webby was right, as always. She had been awake since the first boom of thunder. Webby snuggled close to her, smiling and taking a deep breath. The rest of the kids were tucked into their sleeping bags and somehow still asleep around them despite the thunder that had just echoed through the air.</p><p>“There’s a storm.”</p><p>Lightning flashed outside. “Sure is,” Lena agreed. “You afraid?”</p><p>“Yeah. You know I don’t like storms.”</p><p>“Since <em>when</em>?” Dewey asked in disbelief. Apparently they weren’t all asleep. “You were running around in lightning last – <em>oof</em>!”</p><p>Webby had grabbed her pillow and whipped it as hard as she could at Dewey, knocking him over. That was enough to silence any comments the others wanted to make.</p><p>Lena laughed, adjusting herself to unzip her sleeping bag. “Need help sleeping?”</p><p>“Definitely.”</p><p>Webby rolled onto the floor and snuggled into Lena’s sleeping bag, tucking herself under the teen’s chin. “This okay?”</p><p>“Absolutely.”</p><p>Silence fell for a moment. “Dewey?” Huey asked finally. “Are you okay?”</p><p>Dewey groaned. “Shouldn’t have said anything, dude,” Louie commented. “You know they just look for excuses to cuddle.”</p><p>“As if they need a reason,” Violet said.</p><p>“<em>Good night everyone</em>,” Lena said pointedly. Webby giggled into her shirt, and they relaxed, closing their eyes. The storm outside didn’t seem so frightening anymore.</p><p>She was safe inside, in Webby’s arms. The storm would pass. And she would still be okay.</p>
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